I spent years in the business of low code and no-code solution building as part of Duck Creek Technologies over 20 years ago. It was revolutionary for its time, and I would argue it still cannot be replaced. It was the first application that understood the power of allowing business users – underwriters, actuaries and others – to make rapid changes to their products. Today, what you see under the covers of some of the top online applications for insurance purchasing is driven by the ability to make RAPID changes to your rates. Before Artificial Intelligence ever existed… configurable applications can and were going online in under 30 days. I implemented some of them myself… many of them generating millions in revenue. After spending the last few months vibe-coding and then going back to the Duck Creek user group meeting this week – so many memories flooded back to me. The juxtaposition of those helped me realize it’s time to dig back and share some lessons I learned that I think are incredibly relevant today with the advent of vibe-coding.

Every superpower creates heroes AND villains. The same characters show up in this new movie as did in my day 20 years ago. Same plot. New actors. Lately I have been loving that superhero movies have been giving our villains a little more depth. We can all change. So, I put this quick little article together in case you’re in this world and you find yourself turning into a bit of a villain or maybe working with one.

Villain number 1 is the displaced assistant. The one whose value was usurped. In this case, coders. You’ll find two types of developers in this world… just like we did 20 years ago. The first set will embrace the change. They will realize their productivity tripled. They will realize they can solve a million more problems. The second set will see their value diminished. They will look at decades of time, hours spent, and knowledge learned and say to themselves, “No way this will ever replace ME.” For those coders who love helping others solve problems, teaching them to become great at this is like watching the training segment of the superhero movie. They realize all the possibility of what can happen next and its empowering. For those coders who became addicted to the admiration others had for their craft, the experience is jarring at best. It feels devaluing and demeaning. If you’re in this second camp, all it takes to flip your script is simply to look up. Your market that used to look like a pond has been expanded to an ocean of people that need your help. They could never have afforded your talent before… but now they can.

If a superhero is someone who understands that with great power comes great responsibility, our second villain is often born from someone who does NOT understand their responsibility. They think they are helping. They think they are making things better. Their intentions are entirely good, but they often fall in love with the cape and say yes to things they don’t understand. In reality… they simply do not know what they are doing. And unfortunately, in things like vibe-coding… as in my past life… this exists. And it is absolutely devastating. The road to good intentions can cost you millions of dollars and your job. Trust me, I have seen it… and I am often still fixing it today. We built this AMAZING system, and the abuse of it was rampant. It is, by far, its greatest criticism. Sometimes there is no amount of training that can prevent people from wanting to make someone happy in ways they really should not do. They get a little addicted to the superhero status and they don’t fully understand what lies under the scenes of low and no-code systems. You can absolutely find a way to do anything in these things. But that does not mean you should. The disaster these villains create can leave the tools looking like evil incarnate. We’ve all seen this… it’s usually superhero movie number two in the series. One person misuses the power, makes a big mess and makes so many people mad that even the superheroes have to go into hiding. If this is you, go get training. But honestly… you should do even more than that.

Vibe Coding is here, but just like in my older days… not everyone should do it. The cutting edge can be sharp, especially if you are building for someone that does not have the resources to survive should you start to bleed. Rapid configuration development requires a mixed set of skills to do it well. You need…

• to understand how things are getting put together behind the scenes.
• to know how all the pieces are supposed to connect.
• to have deep enough industry knowledge that you know what ‘yes’ really means
• to spend a lot of time watching the users work ‘for real’ while knowing what the industry requires from them
• to see the technology landscape at large because it is rapidly changing and your configuration may not last long
• to be intuitive enough to read between the lines when users are not responding to your work and humble enough to scratch it and start again – this is the single biggest asset of vibe-coding and low/no code options
• to have enough technical knowledge to know when you’re out of your depth and the right answer is not just to ‘duct tape that baby’
• to have enough business acumen, and humility, to use that duct tape until its time to get help because business opportunity trumps architectural perfection every single day

Vibe-coding will absolutely change the technology landscape for small and midsized businesses. But it could also be devastating if you are not partnered with someone who can fill these gaps. My friends at Codefi are doing superhero training today. Building tools and guidelines that will prevent craziness. Then backing it up with real development when its needed. You can vibe-code about anything right now, I’m convinced of that. OR… you could share a vibe-coded solution with more people like you and start working with a team of industry experts who can actually deliver the system of your dreams… for a fraction of what it cost your bigger competition to deliver. Hopefully my 20 years of experience helps you make the right choice for you and your business.